THE ORDER OF CHAOS Unleash New Single ‘Breakpoint’ Off Upcoming Album “Maniacal”

“Maniacal” Out In 2020

Guitarist John Simon Fallon Announces Departure

The Order of Chaos is proud to present the new single ‘Breakpoint’, from their upcoming album entitled “Maniacal”. This is the band’s first release in over 2 years since the release of the “Night Terror” EP and their first full-length album “Apocalypse Moon” was released over 4 years ago.

“Maniacal” is powerful, fast, to the point, hard-hitting 10 song LP full of memorable choruses and catchy hooks.

The album was engineered by Diego Fernandez at Oracle Studios and Nathan Kidd at Method Music Productions in Edmonton, AB and was mixed by Nino Laurenne at Sonic Pump Studios in Helsinki, Finland (Wintersun, Amorphis, Sonata Arctica) along with mastering done by Svante Forsbäck at Chartmakers Mastering in Espoo, Finland (Rammstein, Volbeat).

This album is The Order of Chaos’ most mature, cohesive and dynamic songwriting effort to date and it represents the end of an era for the band as a founding member, and primary songwriter John Simon Fallon has sadly decided to step away from the group upon release of “Maniacal”.

Despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding its release, the band is incredibly excited to share this album with everyone who has supported them through the past 15 years as well as to all their maniacal heavy metal fans across the globe.

The first single ‘Breakpoint’ from the album is accompanied by a lyric video developed by Dwi Nugraha of Genoicide Artwork, which can be viewed via MetalInjection HERE.

“Breakpoint” is one of the first ideas I wrote for this album, and it took me over a year to perfect. It was quite a manic process. Like all other songs on this album, it is not just a bunch of convenient riffs sandwiched together without thought or consideration. It is written from the heart. The aggressiveness of guitars are built on some of the frustrations I had not only in both my personal and professional life, and lyrically it explores many of the sentiments Amanda and I had, around the time I knew that it was time for me to hit pause on my tenure in TOOC. It ended up being the opening track on “Maniacal” and also one of the singles which makes me extremely happy because I’ve been in love with this song since the minute Amanda and I started demoing it. It’s different from anything we’ve ever released but it definitely still has the signature sound our fans have grown to love. Check it out and you’ll see what I mean.” says John Simon Fallon

“Maniacal” presents a unique and fresh sound and modern direction for The Order of Chaos and allows the band to end this era of chaos on a high note.

The album will be formally released in 2020, with several additional singles being released over the next few months.

Additional details regarding a formal label/distribution deal and future plans for the group will also be released at a later date.

“The Order of Chaos is one of the best bands ever to come out of Edmonton. Their show stacks up next to any international festival act” – Darryl Bowers, Boonstock Festival

“The Order of Chaos is the fucking warning that metal is still alive and that female vocalists are more than masturbation fodder. After the 3 years gone, they have not only returned, they have taken over. This is one of the best cds of 2015. You have been warned, this is the year of Chaos.” – Wicked Channel

“Their compositions are characterized by speed, highly skilled guitar playing that reflects on the solo and the lead parts of their music and of course melody that is combined with grooves and some thrash and melodic death metal riffs.” – Nick Parastatidis (Behind the Veil)

The intrepid duo of Edmonton’s Sleepwraith are releasing their debut album “Day Terrors” on January 17, 2020.

This is the first album from Sleepwarith in what is expected to be a series of releases under the name. The songs and overall flow of the album feel like a journey that takes an emotional toll on the listener, with dynamic parts and unexpected turns. To Sleepwraith it’s important to create music with levels of intricacy that you might not notice on the first listen. Sleepwraith explains their motivation behind writing the album:

“We created an album with little thought as to how it would be received, instead of focusing on making an album that we would want to hear. We’ve always felt that making art with this starting point has created some of the most genuine music out there. Hopefully, our fans enjoy music for the same reasons we do and enjoy this album as much as we do.”

The first single from this album is ‘The Aphelion Complex’, described by the band as an angry trip to the infirmary with soaring melodies and heavy intricacy. Sleepwraith expands on the lyrical themes present:

“The main inspiration is the need to expel the demons within and contain them in an art form. We use this inner turmoil as a starting place, and try to make it into something beautiful. It’s painful and sometimes disgusting, but it’s also therapeutic.

Sleepwraith comes from Edmonton, Canada and the project has been incubated over the course of 20 years and five previous bands ranging from grunge to metalcore to punk rock to hardcore.

The partnership of Seedy Mitchell (guitars/vocals) and Ryan Biggs (drums) is based on a friendship that goes back to before either of them were playing music or even listening to metal. Now that partnership has developed into a dark and dynamic collaborative undertaking that sees Mitchell bringing material to the table in the form of multiple personalities (guitar, bass, vocals) and those elements being worked on together until a song is built.

Coming from different musical backgrounds, Mitchell and Biggs have found their differing styles complement each other and blend to form their brand of deep and intricate metal. Their music conveys emotion through the music but also maintains a technicality that makes it interesting to write and play, and subsequently, listen to.

Sleepwraith wants to tell stories musically and lyrically, focused primarily on creating and releasing new music and art without being concerned about playing it live. All of their energies have been pointed at that goal. With influences coming from all over the metal map including prog, death, mathcore, metalcore, and hardcore, Sleepwraith is an upcoming original band with something for all listeners. The more you listen to it, the more there is to hear.

Their debut album “Day Terrors” is slated for release on January 17, 2020.

Painting their canvas of extreme music with inspirations of real-life stories of murder, conspiracy, supernatural horror, and terror, Edmonton’s Tales of The Tomb unleashed their new EP “Volume Two: Mendicium” this past September. The EP is a vicious bite of grinding blast beats, technical shredding accompanied by venomous guttural lows. Inspired by true events, the duo offer up gore-filled lyrics with a quivering soundscape. The EP was mixed and mastered by Cryptopsy guitarist and head engineer/owner at The Grid Studios Christian Donaldson along with featuring artwork by Tony Midi of Tonymidi Artworks. The EP also contains a bonus track about the Japanese horror film ‘Mermaid In A Manhole’, which the band have put together a new lyric video for at the following link HERE.

The band explains the story behind the bonus track in further detail:

“‘Mermaid In A Manhole’ is the only song we have written that is truly-fictional. Based on a Japanese horror film Mermaid in a Manhole. The song focuses on a painter that is suffering from depression, who disembowels his wife while in a psychotic state. The story of the song ‘Mermaid in a Manhole’ does not really fit into our conspiracy theme we have for this EP. This is why we decided to list it as a bonus track to give it a proper release and the band had no plans to write more true-fiction based songs. Sonically we tried to recreate the psychosis the painter was going through, we wanted to represent the chaos that must have been going on in the painter’s mind to have brought himself to murder his wife. There is a sample at the end of the song, which has the sound of chopping and a man speaking in Japanese. This is audio taken right from the movie at the part where the painter is sitting on the ground covered in blood chopping up the remains of his mermaid saying, “My Mermaid, My Mermaid is dead.”

Unified by the desire to have the grotesque power of 90’s era death and murder metal, Tales of The Tomb started as a thought that grew into an insatiable need to make extreme music. Tales Of The Tomb was created in October 2013 from founder Corey Skerlak (guitar, vocals) out of inspiration from the original murder metal band Macabre.

Much of their inspiration is drawn from the hideous crimes and conspiracies of the world. Retelling stories of the dark hidden secrets and victims from such crimes. This was the inspiration for the name Tales of The Tomb.

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“RIYL: Serial killers and death metal. Now, many of you may think the two already go hand in hand, but new dimensions of depravity are opened when you take the murderous criminals Macabre and Church of Misery have been glorifying forever and backdrop it with noise more akin to Cannibal Corpse Fist-****ing At The Gates. Or Vice Versa.” – Decibel Magazine

“It’s got a European death metal feel to it, and while it’s definitely heavy, it’s centerpiece is a melodic guitar solo. If the rest of the EP, out on November 27th, is anything like the first taste of it, signals Tales of the Tomb as a band we’ll be hearing more – Metal Insider

“Grooves entwine and work their way under the skin like toxic vines, whilst the body of the song strolls with a deceitful calm as much hued in more classic metal essences as it is in death metal voracity.” – RingMaster Review

“Volume One: Morpras stands as a melodic treat fans of cold sounding death metal, melodic or otherwise, will definitely get a kick out of.” – Apochs Metal Review

Painting their canvas of extreme music with inspirations of real-life stories of murder, conspiracy, supernatural horror, and terror, Edmonton’s Tales of The Tomb unleashed their new EP “Volume Two: Mendicium” this past September. In support of the release, the band is sharing their latest video for their track ‘Dyatlov Pass Incident’.

The band explains the story behind the song:

“9 hikers disappeared in what is now called the Dyatlov Pass in Russia. This incident had inspired many different conspiracies trying to explain what happened to the 9 hikers that went missing and were later found dead in the mountain range. Because there was a random unidentified scrap of clothing that looked to come from a military uniform found at the sight of the event. We are taking the angle put forth that the hikers unknowingly stumbled across a military weapons test and met their demise. Basically, they were there at the wrong place at the wrong time and the government was forced to cover up their deaths that the weapons test caused. There was evidence of the hikers ripping the tent from the inside and one of the hikers was found with extensive radiation burns, unclothed, fingernails and hands ripped apart from what was later determined to be from trying to climb the surrounding trees and much more. The song is written push-pull between the chaos of stumbling into this extension event vs. a seemingly normal journey. This was the last song written and displays the direction we are trying to move into from our past EP.”

A sonic attack layered with grinding blast beats, injected with menacing guttural lows, “Volume Two: Mendicium” is straight from hell with gore-filled lyrics leaving little to the imagination, destroying your eardrums like a corpse erased in an acid-filled bath. The EP was mixed and mastered by Cryptopsy guitarist and head engineer/owner at The Grid Studios Christian Donaldson. The EP also contains a bonus track about the Japanese horror film Mermaid in a Manhole. Featuring artwork by Tony Midi of Tonymidi Artworks.

Unified by the desire to have the grotesque power of 90’s era death and murder metal, Tales of The Tomb started as a thought that grew into an insatiable need to make extreme music. Tales Of The Tomb was created in October 2013 from founder Corey Skerlak (guitar, vocals) out of inspiration from the original murder metal band Macabre.

Much of their inspiration is drawn from the hideous crimes and conspiracies of the world. Retelling stories of the dark hidden secrets and victims from such crimes. This was the inspiration for the name Tales of The Tomb.

– 30 –

“RIYL: Serial killers and death metal. Now, many of you may think the two already go hand in hand, but new dimensions of depravity are opened when you take the murderous criminals Macabre and Church of Misery have been glorifying forever and backdrop it with noise more akin to Cannibal Corpse Fist-****ing At The Gates. Or Vice Versa.” – Decibel Magazine

“It’s got a European death metal feel to it, and while it’s definitely heavy, it’s centerpiece is a melodic guitar solo. If the rest of the EP, out on November 27th, is anything like the first taste of it, signals Tales of the Tomb as a band we’ll be hearing more – Metal Insider

“Grooves entwine and work their way under the skin like toxic vines, whilst the body of the song strolls with a deceitful calm as much hued in more classic metal essences as it is in death metal voracity.” – RingMaster Review

“Volume One: Morpras stands as a melodic treat fans of cold sounding death metal, melodic or otherwise, will definitely get a kick out of.” – Apochs Metal Review

Edmonton, AB’sJULIET RUIN recently released their first full-length album “Old Stardust, Love and Chaos” on September 6, 2019 to follow their 2017 debut self titled EP. The release promises to be more technical with heavy instrumentation, including some dabbling in low tuned 7 string guitars to create an original sound chock full of catchy hooks that convey a fresh and emotive feel to their heavy music. Lead vocalist Jess Ruin has added more screams, but also more clean techniques with her pop-esque power vocals. Fans of forward-thinking modern metal such as Evanescence, System of a Down, and Killswitch Engage should take special note of this powerful and emotive Canadian band.

Teaming up with GhostCultMag.com, JULIET RUIN is excited to premiere their latest lyric video for the track ‘Fight To Win’at the following link HERE.

The band adds:

“‘Fight to Win’ is probably one of the more unique tracks on the album. It begins softly and quickly changes pace, flowing into our most experimental vocals in the verses. FTW is a wordy and exciting track with an array of vocal styles. The verses of this one are special vocally because of creative on-the-spot thinking in the studio by Diego Fernandez. The last-minute change to make the verses more spoken the entire mood of the song different. FTW is an ode to owning up to a vengeful nature just to flaunt it proudly as a warning sign.”

“Every band needs to find that element, which connects them with a fanbase, and Juliet Ruin has done that early on in their career.” – PureGrainAudio

“Pre-album single “Spite” that features a Sprite logo is also reminiscent of “Cloud Factory” era Jinjer with an excellent vocal range on show. Blending riffs seamlessly with gravity defying leaps between sub-genres from classic Metal to Hard Rock to Metalcore, it’s a nice twist on the conventional approach.” – Metal Noise

“If you are into Halestorm, Jinjer, Killswitch Engage you are gonna fall in love with this group not just a bit. But madly and deeply! Grab a hold of this gem of a release on the 6th of September you aint gonna regret it , cos Juliet Ruin aint gonna “Ruin” ya day they are gonna make it !! ” – The Metal Gods Meltdown

Edmonton proggers SLEEPING IN TRAFFIC recently released their double EPs on September 27th. “That Which Destroys Us” is dark and aggressive in sound while “That Which Saves Us” has a more upbeat and catchy vibe.

Teaming up with GearGods, the band is showcasing their latest guitar/bass/keys/vocals playthrough for their track ‘Exoplanets’ off “That Which Saves Us”.

The band adds:

“‘The song is full of interesting riffs and grooves, the guitars and bass are augmented by Cory’s synth playing. Incorporating big chords and complex sequencing, any synthesizer gear head would love this track.”

With influences from Between The Buried & Me, Devin Townsend and Tool, the newest release is a split EP that explores the dual nature of the band’s music. The band explains the duality in their vision:

“The first ‘That Which Saves Us’is the “upbeat EP”. It strongly represents a lot of the pop-punk influences that Ryan and Greg bring to the band, and features songs with inspiring themes and uplifting major keys. The other ‘That Which Destroys Us’ displays more of the band’s extreme metal influences, without abandoning some of the weirdness the band is known for. The EPs continue to explore odd time signatures and polyrhythms in the context of heavily distorted guitars, snarling synths, and guttural vocals.”

Based out of Edmonton, Canada, Sleeping In Traffic is a progressive metal band whose artistic vision is built around the concept of change. Nothing in the band’s music is intended to remain static. Each album and performance brings new adaptations and innovations; always playing with the sonic possibilities.

Influenced by the likes of Between The Buried and Me, Devin Townsend, and Porcupine Tree, they have been manifesting dynamic, and ever-evolving music since 2014. Sleeping In Traffic released their debut self titled EP in 2014 and the full length ‘Feminism’ in 2017 that is a guitar-driven hard rock/metal concept album that borrows heavily from ska, jazz, pop-punk, and classic prog rock. They have graced many stages in Western Canada including performances at Alberta’s Farmaggedon Metal Fest (2015) and Edmonton’s Shredmonton (2016/17).

Sleeping In Traffic is releasing two new EPs in 2019, ‘That Which Saves Us’ and ‘That Which Will Destroy Us’ each with a different character. One explores the darker, heavier metal influences of the band, while the other channels the more upbeat side to their music. Synthesizers will form a core element to both of these releases due on September 27, 2019.

Sleeping in Traffic consists of four members, each with their own unique and eclectic musical tastes, which influence their contributions to the band.

Greg Turner’s unusual approach to guitar is a core element of Sleeping In Traffic’s music. Stuttered, chaotic time signatures and bizarre chord voices in catchy patterns flow from his fingers to form the basis of many of the songs. His use of a multitude of pedals adds colourful timbres and occasionally acts as their own instrument.

Ryan Berehulke carves out a thundering obelisk of depth from his 5-string bass and his tower of speakers. His style is definitive in a way that meshes perfectly with the guitars to provide a wall of reinforcement, yet often also takes the main stage, without ever abandoning the supreme role as the band’s foundation. His ingenuity in his approach to bass playing is indispensable; from the funky groove and raw, pounding roars; all the way to evolving, ambient textures.

Andrew Bateman is a mad scientist behind a drum-kit. With his intricate knowledge of rhythms, he weaves complex patterns in and around the eccentric time signatures that the music follows. His array of styles ranges from pulverizing metal to pattering, offbeat jazz and everything in between. He is always searching for novel rhythmic cadences and new ways to strike the same drums. He is highly technical, yet playful; often improvising on the spot and testing the limits of his fellow musicians.

Cory Bosse acts as the voice of the band, as well as the source of many of its most unexpected sounds. His bombastic singing style has its roots in the metal music that originally inspired him to make music, yet weaves in a multitude of techniques from the myriad of styles he has explored since. Operatic vibratos flow into passionate howls, jazz scat collapses into death growls, and beat boxing meanders into throat singing in a pandemonium of vocal exploration. To help compliment each song’s particular character, he harnesses the power of a host of instruments, including keys, saxophone, synthesizers, and guitar.

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“The 9-track record comes with a focused story-telling, remarkable songwriting and with an offer of something that separates them from the bigger part of the prog gang. The band is not shy to explore within pop, indie rock or alternative and fuse these elements with sound-defining progressive rock and metal influences.” – Prog-Sphere

“Feminism possesses great balance between the up-beat rock tunes polished with rock’s progressive and alternative subgenres, but what this album shows is talent of the band which certainly can bring something epic. Until then, let Feminism shows itself in its full brilliance.” – Progzilla

“sound more like their fellow countrymen Protest the Hero, albeit with a sax in the mix of things. Their overall style is the same careening prog metal that PtH are good at… For a debut album, I am impressed with “Feminism.”… I think Sleeping in Traffic have potential, so they are worth following.” – Progressive Music Planet

“Hollow” serves as the perfect introduction to IMONOLITH, a band whose mission is simple: to write the heaviest riffs, the biggest hooks, and most monstrous grooves. Given the impressive pedigree of each player, they do exactly this and more.

Recorded and produced by Brian Howes and Jay Van Poederooyen (Nickelback, Chris Cornell, Airbourne, Hinder, Daughtry) at Van Howes Studios in Los Angeles, California, “Hollow” is immediately setting the bar high and the best is yet to come.

Drummer Ryan ‘RVP’ Van Poederooyen comments:

“’Hollow’ is a song about the personal battles we all can face internally. Social pressures and self-expectation can drive you to a point of feeling hollow inside if you don’t meet specific standards in your mind. The song itself actually has a positive message built into it. It’s not about feeling hollow, it’s more about preventing that hollow feeling that any one of us can develop through negative thinking and limited beliefs.”

Fans can expect many surprises as they unveil more music. RVP continues:

“As for ‘Hollow’, musically it represents the catchier side of IMONOLITH’s music. We have varying influences spread throughout the band and we don’t like to play just one style of music. We have a more metal crushing side, a catchier radio side and then music that fits in-between our heavy and catchier vibes. We always aim to make IMONOLITH’s overall sound diverse and interesting. Most of all, we’re always focused on trying to write a great song, no matter if it’s heavy or catchy.”

IMONOLITH was officially formed in February 2018 by drummer Ryan ‘RVP’ Van Poederooyen and guitarist Brian Waddell, although the pair started writing their own brand of heavy music in 2015 whilst playing together in the Devin Townsend Project. RVP and Waddell then went on to recruit vocalist Jon Howard, bassist Byron Stroud, and second guitarist Kai Huppunen, completing a fearsome line-up. The Canadian quintet has since written a mass of highly diverse material, which appeals to everyone from the metalhead to the radio rock fan, and everyone in between.

Since teasing demos and video clips online, IMONOLITH have amassed a dedicated legion of supporters worldwide, and with the release of the new single, their following is set to expand by the thousands. With their first run of shows throughout Canada announced and big international plans in the pipeline, 2019 is set to be a huge year for IMONOLITH.

One band to rule them all! Going on its sixth year, Wacken Metal Battle Canada returns to present one unsigned Canadian band to conquer hundreds and perform at the world’s largest metal festival, Wacken Open Air. The 2019 line up includes Sabaton, Parkway Drive, Demons & Wizards, Powerwolf, Airbourne, Rose Tattoo, Within Temptation, Meshuggah and many more. Full details here.

Year six of these battles is a very exciting one because for the first time, Wacken Metal Battle Canada will be expanding to St. John’s, NL and Halifax, NS to make the competition officially coast to coast. Full list of participating regions listed below.

In addition to the expansion to the East coast, Wacken Metal Battle Canada will be hosting the 2019 national final for the first time in Western Canada. The host city will be Calgary, AB, moving it from Toronto, ON, where the national final has been held for the last 5 years.

Wacken Metal Battle Canada organizer JJ Tartaglia comments:

“I think these new changes for 2019 will be a big help in keeping the Metal Battle Canada exciting for both the bands and the audience. The idea of moving around the national final has been tossed around for a while now, so holding the finals in Calgary this year will be a refreshing twist on the structure. And the East Coast! As a Maritimer myself, I couldn’t be happier with the addition of Halifax and St. John’s, now making these events truly coast to coast.”

Winner of this year’s Wacken Metal Battle Canada national final will receive $2,000 CAD towards airfare to travel and perform at the 30th edition of Wacken Open Air taking place from August 1st – 3rd, 2019 in Wacken, Germany. The Canadian champion will also have the opportunity to win monetary and gear prizes from the international Wacken Metal Battle. International prizes listed below plus more info can be found here.

Winners of the International Wacken Metal Battle will receive cash and other prizes (2019 prizes still to be announced)

2018 Prizes were the following:

1st Place
– Slot to play at the Full Metal Holiday Festival in Mallorca including flight and accommodation
– 5000€ from the Wacken Foundation and more!

Wacken Metal Battle Canada is part of an international competition that sees bands from across the country battle each other for the chance of winning their spot among 29 other countries’ champions, and representing the Canada in an international battle of the bands at the world’s largest outdoor metal festival: Wacken Open Air, which has been taking place in Wacken , Germany for the last 29 years. The winner of Wacken Metal Battle Canada will perform at the 2019 festival taking place from August 1st – 3rd.

“Edmonton’s Protosequence perform an agile balancing act on the new song “Shepherd” we’re bringing you from their forthcoming EP, Biophagus, a high-wire performance that deftly straddles a stylistic divide without ever losing their path forward.” No Clean Singing

“In the vein of bands like All Shall Perish & Born of Osiris, Protosequence kick proceedings off with the furiously tech riffing of Parasitic, a wild & untamed slab of death metal. That is until a surprising tempo change that brings in some keyboards & more classic metal sounding guitar solo. It’s a damn strong start, one that leaves you wondering just what more Biophagous has to offer.” – Games, Braaaiiins And A Headbanging Life

“Protosequence is an act of quality over quantity. I get seriously lost in their music, be it through a spine-damaging headbanging session (“DFL”) or stretch of melodic introspection (“Shepherd”). Biophagous offers up another nice showcase of the band’s skill across a variety of substyles and paces.” – Metal Trenches

“Biophagus is of another caliber, every aspect of it is flawless, and will not only be in my playlist but should be in everyone else’s as well. Whatever you do, do not sleep on this band. Make sure you pick up Biophagus when it releases August 18th! ” – Blood Rock Media

“Incorporating elements from deathcore, technical death metal, and, yes, even djent, Protosequence manages to maintain the listener’s interest while developing an identity that is not only unique to Canada, but to the world. ” – It Djents

“You can compare Protosequence to as many modern metal bands as you want but they’re deserve being called more than “just another scene band”. “Schizophrene’ is more than solid and the new EP will be worth the wait on this showing. Cracking modern tech-death.” – This Noise Is Ours

“This EP is bursting with technical hooks and ripping solos that take more than a few cues from the technical death metal camp. In fact, if we consider a spectrum between these genres, I would say that Schizophrene falls closer to groups like The Zenith Passage than Whitechapel. Also, mad props for the seemless shifts between melodic and harsh riffs while maintaining aggression in the vocals.” – Metal Trenches (EP Review Schizophrene)

“Musically speaking, they share as much in common with Periphery as they do with Lost Soul. While there will be some who are turned off by the noise gates and the disparity of the chunky lows and the sharp highs, I think it’s one of the band’s biggest strengths. It represents the merging of two very technical subgenres and presents each of them in the context of the other. It’s kind of a hard thing to explain without listening; check out “Guardian” and follow it up with “Darkness Weeps” for the best illustration of this dichotomy.” – Toilet ov Hell (EP Review Schizophrene)

EP Credits:– Guitars tracked by Tylor Dory– Pre-production drums with Peter Zawalski– Piano on ‘Parasitic’ written and recorded by Tylor Dory– Guest Vocals on ‘DFL’ by Diaro Irvine– Bass written by Ryan Schaffler– Vocals and drums recorded by Greg Wright at Hillbilly Wizard Sound– Editing, Mixing and Mastering by Chris Foster at First Strike Recordings– Artwork and CD layout design by Erskine Designs– Band Photo by Ryan Wiesner at Trivium Photography

Protosequence was formed in the spring of 2014 by 5 guys who shared the same goal: create an array of songs that reflected each of them personally. As autumn approached that year, the band started to play in Edmonton, as well as Central and Southern Alberta. Releasing their debut 4 song EP “Schizophrene” in January of 2016, they quickly established a name for themselves in the Edmonton and area metal scene. Bassist Ryan Schaffler left the band in early 2017, with Jacob Teeple filling the vacancy seamlessly. After taking to the road, completing a 10 day tour of Western Canada in June, they hit the studio and released their sophomore 4 song EP “Biophagous” in August of 2017. 2018 saw Protosequence solidify and expand their following around Western Canada. Playing Armstrong and Metallion Festival, touring through BC, as well as sharing the stage with touring acts like The Faceless, Angelmaker, Ingested, Signs of the Swarm, Bodysnatcher, and others. In August, vocalist Joe McKee announced his retirement from Protosequence, with guitarist Kyle Hunter following suit a few weeks later. Protosequence quickly added Josh Hahn to the mix on vocals after seeing him perform with his previous band, Seraphic Nihilist. Shortly after Metallion Festival, the band convinced him to move from Prince George, BC, to the motherland: Edmonton, Alberta. With no luck finding a replacement guitarist, the band pressed on into writing mode.

STRIKER will be returning to their shredding grounds of Alberta in April for their first Canadian shows since unleashing their fifth studio album on February 24th, which the band has been touring the USA plus Europe in support of for last three months.

Their shows, April 13th in Calgary at Dicken’s Pub, hometown return on April 14th in Edmonton at Starlite Room and April 15th in Red Deer at The Vat will be CD release events for their Albertan fans that have been loyal over the years supporting STRIKER‘s career in the province and beyond.

STRIKER‘s self-titled album released via their indie label Record Breaking Records features 9 shredding tracks that are all killer and no filler to continue the band’s classic mix of heavy metal.

In additional news, STRIKER has been nominated for four Edmonton Music Awards (Album of The Year, Metal Recording of The Year, Group of The Year, People’s Choice). The award nominations are for their highly praised 2016 album ‘Stand In The Fire’ (album stream here).

“We are hoping to make the hat-trick for Metal Recording of the Year at the Edmonton Music Awards this year. We are super stoked to be nominated for Album of The Year as well as Group of The Year. It was a fantastic year for us so let’s keep it rolling with some new hardware!” comments guitarist Tim Brown.

Striker is an Edmonton-based recording and performing heavy metal band that has grown immensely through their years in the industry. A classic mix of heavy metal, hard rock, and 80’s hair metal, their music features powerful, clean vocals, catchy choruses, vocal harmonies, and impressive guitar leads.

Audiences are often floored by the energy of their live show, and their recorded material has been met with fantastic response by both fans and industry across the world. Striker has toured across dozens of countries as headliners as well as support for major metal acts. Gearing up for the release of their latest album the sky’s the limit for these Canadians!!

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“Striker gush with so much enthusiasm here, with explosive riffs swirling between the vibrant harmonies and choruses, that it’s hard not to notice…Tracks like “Former Glory” and “Born to Lose” are anthemic, catchy as hell and feature soaring vocals from Dan Cleary and terrific guitar work by Tim Brown…On Striker, the band take a host of influences and hone them into a sound they can call their own.” – Exclaim!

“From the first storm-summoning power chord on the opener Former Glory, Striker (CAN)​ proves their new album’s initial claim of not dwelling on the past, a high and appropriate cry of “Yeah, I’m back again!”… If you haven’t witnessed this inspiring resurrection of classic metal, the band plays Friday, April 14 at Starlite with Ravenous and Tylor Dory Trio, no doubt sharpened from the faithful overseas audiences.” – Edmonton Journal

“When a band releases an eponymous album it’s a statement of intent, a sign of confidence, everything being as it should be. For make no mistake, Striker are a special band. As the old Metal Gods ascend to Valhalla, new gods will arise. This is Striker’s fifth album and it’s just timeless. Not retro, not looking back, but taking everything that’s uplifting and glorious about heavy metal into 2017 and beyond…this album has to be in every writer and fan’s top ten at the end of 2017.” – Hellbound

“A less balls out, more aggressive record than its predecessor, STRIKER delivers another impressive collection of high energy headbangers….Regardless of what your heavy metal predilections may be, STRIKER offers something for everyone. Super catchy tunes dripping with shred gymnastics and all around technical prowess, Striker deserves a place on any metal fan’s playlist….If you have not experienced Striker yet, this album is a worthy place to start and should appeal to a wide range of fans, particularly followers of the Priest, Anthrax and Maiden.” – Metal Rules
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